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For the third year running, HNU hosted its own Wrestlemania event on campus. Unlike in previous years, when the event was held in the Public Market, this year’s edition was staged in the Valley Center for the Performing Arts. HNU graduate student Josh Hammer, sophomore Garrett Mitchell (who has assumed the mantle of HNU spirit leader Captain Hawk from Hammer), and many other HNU students helped organize this year’s Wrestlemania, which was held on Thursday, March 23. Ticket sales for the event raised more than $3,000 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. In addition, Omari Curry—a Make-A-Wish recipient and a big wrestling fan—and his family were the guests of honor at the event.

This year’s Wrestlemania followed a similar format to last year’s, with three tag-team matches, culminating with the headline match at the end of the evening. The event opened with a match between the HNU mascot, MoHawk, and his partner, Johnny Dynamo, against Chilly the Penguin and the Berkeley Brawler. In contrast to last year’s disappointing showing, Team Hawk fought valiantly and won the match.

(l to r:) Chilly the Penguin, MoHawk, Berkeley Brawler, and Johnny Dynamo wrestled in the first match of the evening.

In the second match of the night, The Boateng and Grandpa Hawk took on the duo of American Tucker and Tiana “Bo$$ Hawk.” At the end of a tough match, the underdog team of The Boateng and Grandpa Hawk were declared the winners.

(l to r:) Matthew Beland, the special guest referee for the second match, looks on as American Tucker greets his partner, Tiana "Bo$$ Hawk."

Matthew Beland (middle) declares The Boateng and Grandpa Hawk the winners of the second match. Crisol Jimenez (far right) makes the official announcement.

The marquee match, which was billed as a one-on-one match between Captain Hawk and The Hammer (Josh Hammer), evolved into a one-on-one-on-one match with the introduction of Leo “G-Money” Gonzalez, the chosen representative of HNU Admissions (a team led by Hawk Hogan, a.k.a. Alan Liebrecht, vice president for enrollment management).

(l to r:) The Hammer and his entourage listen to the challenge made by Hawk Hogan.

All three contestants fought each other in the ring, on the VPCA stage, and in the crowd.

Captain Hawk

The Hammer getting ready to slam Captain Hawk to the ground.

The Hammer leaping from the top rope to attack Leo "G-Money" Gonzalez.

Although the Hammer took an early lead, he was stymied by the dual assault from Captain Hawk and Leo “G-Money” Gonzalez, in addition to an ambush attack by Justin “The Vacc” Vacca. In the middle of the match, the Hammer and Leo “G-Money” Gonzalez threw Captain Hawk through a table that sat in the middle of the VCPA’s main aisle, and attendants had to take Captain Hawk out on a stretcher. Later, Captain Hawk made his return to the match and pinned both the Hammer and Leo “G-Money” Gonzalez in quick succession, earning himself the championship belt once again.

Captain Hawk returns to exact his revenge on the Hammer and Leo "G-Money" Gonzalez.

Captain Hawk, with the championship belt in hand, addresses the audience.

When asked about the event, Hammer reflected on how the event had exceeded his and others’ expectations. “I think, personally, that it came out better than we envisioned. Without a doubt,” he said. “Yes, there’s always going to be room for improvements, but when it comes down to it, it takes a village to make it happen. I think we really had a group of committed students and faculty to pull it off. The fact that we raised $1,000 more than we did previously says a lot about the event—that it really is the most electrifying event in HNU entertainment. We wanted everyone to leave the VCPA in awe of what they witnessed. And I think we did that.”

The special thanks from the organizers of Wrestlemania are presented below.

Special thanks to:

Gold Rush Pro Wrestling for providing the ring as well as proving us with epic superstars: the Hawk, Penguin, Johnny Dynamo, main event hype man, "Lucian D. Light," and the Berkley Brawler.

Professor Chiho Sawada, PhD, for the raffle prize of two MVP box-seat tickets for the SF Giants and Oakland A's game.

ASHNU student government for the tailgate kickoff

Epicurean for the wonderful dinner and donations

Kirsten Campos, Luis Guerra, Fredy Trujillo, Ethan Machado, David Mejia, and all of the Campus Services team for helping every step on the way. This event could not have happened without your support.

Sister Kathleen Ross, PhD, president emerita of Heritage University in Toppenish, Washington, HNU Trustee, and this year’s Visiting SNJM Scholar, came to campus during the week of March 13. Sr. Kathleen led six inclusivity workshops on campus for the benefit of faculty and staff, and participated in a classroom discussion and other events.

Sister Kathleen Ross, PhD, president emerita of Heritage University and HNU Trustee

This past fall, HNU conducted campus climate surveys for students and for faculty and staff. The University commissioned the surveys to gather information from the HNU community and to explore how it can continue to enhance its mission as a diverse and inclusive institution.

Sr. Kathleen reviewed the results of the student survey with faculty and staff during her inclusivity workshops. She selected a few salient statistics from the report and provided context for the attendees.

During the sessions, Sr. Kathleen asked all attendees to think about their own identities and to consider times when they might have felt stressed or anxious because of their identities. Participants were encouraged to engage in small-group discussions and share their thoughts.

In the latter part of the workshops, Sr. Kathleen spoke about techniques that faculty, staff, and others can use to make HNU more inclusive for students. She mentioned that many of the techniques she discussed have been put into practice at Heritage University, where the Institute for Student Identity and Success (which she founded) continues to develop and analyze other methods to improve the student experience. The Institute has produced 14 short videos, of three to four minutes in length, that share faculty inclusivity strategies (available at www.heritage.edu/institute). Sr. Kathleen has also written a book about these methods, Breakthrough Strategies: Classroom-Based Practices to Support New Majority College Students, which was published by Harvard Education Press in 2016.

In an interview near the end of her visit, Sr. Kathleen spoke about how enthusiastically the HNU faculty and staff participated in the inclusivity workshops. “Well, I was really pleased that the people who participated were really engaged and really shared from their experiences,” she said. “And this is a topic, diversity—and I like to talk about it as inclusivity and couch it as working on our inclusivity quotient, our IQ—when you’re working on that, the involvement of people and their ability to share from their experience is a vital part of that being successful.”

Sr. Kathleen spoke about how she has seen higher education institutions change their approach to diversity and inclusivity. “Well most colleges and universities nationally still have a majority of students—and I’m talking about four-year institutions—who come from Anglo, Caucasian, however you want to put it, middle-class backgrounds, and they’re not the first generation in their families to go to college,” she said. “The percentage of students who are coming from working-class and lower-income backgrounds who are not Anglo, and who are the first in their families to work toward a four-year degree or to earn one—that percentage is growing and it’s growing dramatically. So our [student] population is gradually shifting and it’s interesting that when it shifts like that, when that so-called minority group goes from 20% to 25%, it doesn’t really make that much difference. 25% to 30% it makes a little more difference, but when it gets up to 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, suddenly people become much more aware of it and realize that there are some very important climate issues and skills that need to be fostered in order for that to work in a positive way.

“So as we already know, Holy Names University is on the forefront of being an institution that has a true high diversity index, meaning that there aren’t just people from one or two ethnic and socioeconomic groups, but from many,” Sr. Kathleen continued. “So there’s a mix of people. Students’ awareness of differences is really heightened. And that’s good as long as they get the support to see how to recognize and accept others’ differences, how to accept their own differences without putting themselves down.”

HNU held its ninth annual Scholarship Luncheon on Wednesday, March 22, to celebrate the philanthropic contributions of donors and to recognize the success of student scholarship recipients. Alumni, friends, faculty, and staff attended the event, along with many of the HNU students who had received scholarships this academic year.

Vice President for Mission Effectiveness Sister Carol Sellman delivered the welcoming remarks at the event, and HNU Interim President Jeanie Watson, PhD, expressed how thankful the University was for the continued support of donors and friends. “As I’m sure the students sitting at your tables can tell you, the scholarships that you have established make all the difference in their ability to attend Holy Names,” Watson said. “So, on behalf of our students and the University, I want to thank you for your generosity. You really do make a significant difference in the lives of others in this world.”

Guillermo Estrada, a senior Latin American and Latino/a studies major and student scholarship recipient, spoke about his journey to HNU. He said that he left home 16 years ago to come to the U.S., promising his mother that he was going to learn English and attend school. Estrada attended another university before HNU, but left that institution feeling defeated and disappointed. “I transferred to HNU from a big school in the next set of hills northwest of this campus,” he said. “This transition was difficult. Ego was crushing my spirit. In the fall of 2015, HNU responded to my application for admission with a very generous opportunity. I was still healing from my wounds. The words of encouragement from my friends and the promise I made to my mother gave me the strength to give myself another opportunity. HNU is one of the most beautiful experiences I’ve ever had in my life: the many black and brown faces walking on campus, proud to be the first members of their families to go to college; the broken English of some of us showing no fear to express our imperfections.”

HNU senior Guillermo Estrada

Estrada expressed the gratitude he and his fellow scholarship recipients had for all HNU donors. “It is good people like you that make our stories possible. It is your compassion that gives some of us the opportunity to lead a life of dignity. It is the generosity of good people like you in which many of us have found the freedom to know our true selves and purposes in life. Please know that your support has given me, and all the students at HNU, the courage and determination we need to succeed and that I felt when I told my mother I was leaving 16 years ago.”

Second-year HNU music student Julio Reyes performed Issac Albéniz's "Sevilla" at the close of the luncheon.

The Asia Pacific Peace Studies Institute (APPSI) at HNU hosted Melissa Buron, associate curator of European art for the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, at an event on March 22 in the Valley Center for Performing Arts. Buron delivered an illustrated lecture about Monet: The Early Years, which opened at the Legion of Honor at the end of February.

Melissa Buron, associate curator of European art for the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco

Monet: The Early Years features about 60 paintings from the initial phase of Monet’s career. As Buron said, the exhibition presents Monet’s origin story and shows where he came from, how he developed, and how he became famous.

During her lecture, Buron showed a selection of paintings from the exhibition and spoke about how each painting represented a snapshot of Monet’s developing aesthetic. In her analysis of View at Rouelles Le Havre, one of Monet’s earliest paintings, Buron said that, “This painting shows some of the themes that would fascinate Monet for the rest of his life: reflections in water and clouds. This painting shows how talented he is, even at 17.”

Another painting that Buron found especially remarkable was Monet’s Luncheon on the Grass, done in imitation of Manet’s painting of the same name. Monet had seen Manet’s painting and decided that he would create one of his own as a sort of complement to Manet’s work; however, there were some complications, as Buron explained. “Monet’s Luncheon on the Grass is a huge painting, and he only gave himself three or four months to complete it,” she said. “He didn’t submit the painting in time for the show he’d intended it for. He ran out of money and he had to give the painting to his landlord to pay for his rent. The landlord kept it rolled up in his basement and it became moldy over time. Later, Monet bought it back from the landlord and had to trim the painting into fragments to cut out the moldy portions. But you can see his ambition here. He did this painting in his early 20s, and he was making a statement. He wanted people to know that he was a serious artist and that he was going to stick around.”

Buron also brought attention to the fine-grained details in the paintings that are only apparent when one can examine the artworks up close and in person. “Monet had an incredible ability to sense intuitively what your eye is going to pick up when you step back from the painting. His creation of white [in the painting The Magpie] is radical: it’s a mix of yellow, purple, and blue. Think about how someone has looked at ripples of sunlight and shadow and translated them into brush strokes.”

Monet: The Early Years will remain open at the Legion of Honor until May 29.

As part of the Faculty Salon Talks organized by HNU’s Office of Advancement, Charles Sarno, PhD, associate professor of sociology, delivered a lecture in the Cushing Library on Thursday, March 16, about his research on Harold Camping—the Christian radio evangelist who predicted that May 21, 2011 was the day that the world would end. Sarno also spoke about Camping’s Family Radio organization and the evolution of Camping’s radio show, The Open Forum.

Charles Sarno, PhD, associate professor of sociology

As Sarno pointed out, Camping’s beliefs evolved over time. Camping was born in Colorado and was, for most of his life, a strict Calvinist. He attended UC Berkeley and received his civil engineering degree in 1942. He settled in Alameda, California, and ran his own construction company there for many years.

In 1958, Camping, along with Lloyd Lindquist and Richard Palmquist, founded the Family Radio organization and purchased KEAR FM in San Francisco, in order to broadcast teachings from the Bible and Christian music. In subsequent years, Family Radio acquired more stations and was able to broadcast nationwide. Beginning in the early 1960s, Camping hosted his own call-in show, The Open Forum, during which he answered listeners’ theological questions and offered his own interpretations of passages from the Bible.

The Open Forum became extremely popular with listeners, so much so that people sought out Camping and would visit Alameda to attend the Bible study that he conducted through the Alameda Christian Reformed Church, where he was a member. In 1988, the Alameda Christian Reformed Church asked Camping to leave the congregation because of a disagreement in teachings, a development that, as Sarno explained, had a tremendous impact on the evolution of Camping’s beliefs.

Sarno stated that Camping had no training in theology and so relied on his background as an engineer when he interpreted the Bible. “Camping looked at the Bible as an engineer and saw all these numbers, and he thought that God had a particular plan.” Camping’s form of biblical interpretation led him to develop an initial theory regarding the end of the world, which he published in his book 1994?. In that book, Camping stated that the end of the world would happen in September 1994, although, as Sarno said, Camping qualified his prediction to allow himself some room for error.

Later, Camping adjusted his predictions. He stated that May 21, 2011 would be Judgment Day and October 21, 2011 would mark the end of the world. Sarno said that, in the years leading up to 2011, listener donations to Family Radio increased substantially, and Family Radio spent approximately $10 million to spread the message about the new Judgment Day prediction. After the May 21 date, Camping admitted that he had been mistaken, and acknowledged that he was wrong in attempting to predict the end of the world.

Sarno said that in the aftermath of the failed predictions and Camping’s debilitating stroke in 2011, Family Radio suffered from a lack of leadership and decreased financial support. Family Radio has had to sell some assets (including a station in New York City) in order to continue its operations, and the organization has, per Sarno, moved away from end-times predictions.

In the course of his research, Sarno, in cooperation with Helen Shoemaker, PhD, former associate professor of counseling psychology at HNU, conducted more than 25 interviews with people associated with the Family Radio organization, including both those who believed in Camping’s prophecies and those who were skeptical. Sarno and Shoemaker published two papers based on their research on Camping and Family Radio: “Rationalizing Judgment Day: A Content Analysis of Harold Camping’s Open Forum Program,” written in collaboration with Rebecca Aponte ’10 and Ben Shestakofsky, was published in Sociology of Religion: A Quarterly Review in 2015, and “Church, Sect, or Cult?: The Curious Case of Harold Camping’s Family Radio and the May 21 Movement,” was published in Nova Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions in 2016 and received the journal’s Thomas Robbins Award for Excellence in the Study of New Religious Movements.

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